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7 April 2018 - Toxicity

Are They Carpet Beetles?

"Adult carpet beetles are likely to show up on the inside of windows these warm spring days."


Oh God

What did I do?

I Googled Carpet Beetle and was instantly terrified!


EWWWWWW!

Our Almanac gets a little judgy and says that, "Their presence reflects somewhat on you as a housekeeper."

Gee, Thanks 1970's

So the best way to prevent these grossies is to just make sure you vacuum and vacuum well.
Get in all the cracks and corners. Don't forget to move furniture and get under your couches.

You should also make sure any cracks, openings, and other small spots get patched up to prevent these bugs from getting in.

If you have pets, you should regularly clean their bedding. You should do this anyway but maybe this post will scare some cleaning motivation into you.

Don't confuse some carpet beetles with some breeds of ladybirds.


Coccinellidae

These guys are good to have around. They eat other pests that might harm crops or your pretty flower garden. You can even order these bugs online to populate your lawn.

...

NOW
If you go over the text in the main photo, you will see that our Almanac suggests using Methoxychlor pesticide for treating a possible infestation.

Well sorry to report that as of 2003, this substance was banned in the United States and in 2002 by the European Union.


Large amounts of this pesticide, if exposed to it, can cause nervous depression, diarrhea, liver damage, as well as kidney and heart damage.

In animal models, exposure also effected reproductive systems, reducing fertility in males and females. The study goes on to say that this wasn't confirmed in humans but could effect human fertility as well.

There is another study done by Russian biologist who fed Monsanto GM soy beans to hamsters. These poor guys had some bad side effects such as sterility and still births.

These chemicals are produced for harm. To kill other living organisms. 
So isn't it obvious that human and animal exposure can lead to some messed up symptoms?

...

The moral of the story is to keep your house clean naturally and eat more organic foods free of harm causing pesticides.

The end.



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